Heart, Soul, Spirit
by HanaBri
Summary: While a more desperate Team Rocket attempts to take full control of Johto behind the scenes, Lyra begins her Pokemon journey. But greater powers are at work in the world and certain circumstances push Lyra into the spotlight of the action and straight into contention with a boy named Silver who thwarts her at every turn. A long forgotten prophecy unfolds and legends arise.
1. Great Power

Ch 1

Before the alarm clock could even ring on the morning of September 1st, Lyra Enid's 19th birthday, she was out of bed, pacing. She had been waiting for this her whole life and she wasn't about to sleep through what might be the most amazing day she might ever have. A soft knock sounded on her door, and Lyra called out that it was ok to enter.

"Lyra, my sweet little girl, I can't believe it's finally the day!" Lyra's mother, a brunette woman of 47 who had her daughter's large brown eyes and whose grey hairs were strategically dyed to a light caramel, didn't look bad for her age. But up close, you could see lines around her eyes and mouth, doubtlessly left there when her husband left her alone with a baby at the age of 29. She moved into the room, placing a red backpack onto the bed.

"Mom, I know it's going to be hard for you to let me out, but don't try to talk me out of it again." Lyra rolled her eyes, pausing before stalking towards her mother and the bed that now held her backpack. Lyra looked like a spitting image of her mother, though younger and taller. Where her mother was short, Lyra was average height. Her hair was also a darker brown, left trailing down her back and the sides held back with a bright red bow. Dressed in a tight white tank top with a red jacket thrown over it, blue jeans tucked into white boots, and only pearls in her ears for jewelry, Lyra had been dressed to travel for hours now.

"Don't be upset, I'm not going to try and stop you again, don't worry. I just bought you a few things. Potions, Pokeballs, Antidotes, your basics for travelling as a trainer. I don't want you going out completely unprepared," Lyra's mother said evenly, pulling out a Pokeball and handing it to Lyra. Lyra stared at the Pokeball for a few moments, cupped in her two hands and let out a deep, shuddering breath. She was more nervous than she thought she would be.

A loud BANG sounded from overhead, causing Lyra and her mother to jump, and the ball to slip out of Lyra's hands.

"That damn Gastly again, why haven't I just gotten rid of him yet?" Lyra's mother muttered, walking purposely into the hall, Lyra following from behind. Lyra had always liked the old Ghost pokemon that roamed their home for as long as she remembered. Her mother said he showed up the day she was born and had refused to leave ever since. The Gastly was known to play pranks and pull faces to try and cheer Lyra up when she was down and she felt that a Pokemon who was trying to cheer people up just because it could wasn't a bad Pokemon at all.

"Mom, he never means any harm, anyways. And he's never hurt us in 19 years, so why would we kick him out?" Lyra reminded patiently, nearly colliding with her mother when she pulled up short and turned to look at her.

"Fine, but if he broke something again, it's on your head! Now go finish packing, Elm will kill you if you're late and you'll be kicking yourself if you don't get first choice." Lyra's mom waved her off and continued towards the stairs. Lyra made an about face and headed back to her rooms, pushing the door open farther so she could enter and realized that the Gastly was actually in her room, floating on the ground near the Pokeball like he belonged there.

The Gastly turned to grin at Lyra before poking the large, round button on the Pokeball. The Pokeball popped open and the Gastly peered inside it. Lyra rushed towards the Gastly, hoping he wouldn't accidentally be caught.

"Gastly, no! Don't be caught because you did something stupid!" Lyra cried. The Gastly had been fighting valiantly for its freedom as long as Lyra could remember, dodging Pokeballs and nets and whatever else was thrown at it with ease. If he didn't want to be a kept Pokemon, Lyra wanted him to stay free to roam her home as long as he wished.

But the Gastly turned towards Lyra, the most serious look Lyra had ever seen him wear in her life on its face. He approached Lyra and beckoned with his body towards the Pokeball and Lyra complied, stooping to pick up the Pokeball and bringing it up to her chest protectively.

"Gastly, if you want to come with me, I want that, too. But you've been avoiding capture for nineteen years, and I don't want you to regret it. But I can't imagine any other Pokemon I'd rather have by my side, so if you want to do it, let's do it." Lyra stated firmly, holding out the Pokeball with one hand. Gastly grinned with his two little teeth sticking out and bumped into the ball once, only to be sucked inside. The ball didn't even twist once, and Gastly didn't fight to escape at all.

Lyra rolled the Pokeball back and forth in between two hands contemplatively and then decidedly threw the ball into the air.

"I choose you! Gastly!" Lyra cried, releasing her first Pokemon for the first time.

* * *

"I'm going, I'm going, don't flip mom!" Lyra screeched, zipping out the door at a run, backpack wildly swinging behind her. She slowed to a jog and followed the trail from her house to the Pokemon Lab run by Professor Elm that was located behind her house past a great field.

Arriving at promptly 8:59, she burst the doors open, startling the slightly balding male in glasses and a lab coat, namely Professor Elm.

"Lyra! What a surprise, you're the first one! Come, come, let's get the ball rolling..." Elm stated, smiling lightly and gesturing her through a door that lead to the back. Lyra followed and was promptly stationed in front of a great giant machine with three Pokeballs in the middle.

"So normally, you'd just choose there, but since you're the only one this month, let's take them out!" Elm professed, pushing a button which lifted the glass dome that protected the 3 pokeballs. Another press of the button released all three Pokemon out into the lab.

A small, hyperactive Chikorita bounced up and down on its four little feet before racing towards Elm and running circles around him. A larger than normal, fierce Cyndaquil looked Lyra in the eye and spit a tiny fireball at her, meant to warn rather than harm.

Finally, a little blue Totodile with biggest, reddest eyes Lyra had ever seen looked at her before promptly throwing its arms in the air with a loud "TOTO" and jumping from one foot to the other.

"He's... He's dancing, isn't he? At least, I think he is." Lyra said stunned. The Totodile stopped dancing after a few moments of stunned silence and approached Lyra, sniffing at her boot and taking an experimental nibble.

"I want him. I want him and his name is Tango. Get it? Because he dances and Tango is a dance?" Lyra looked at Elm, who remained stone-faced.

"Yes, alright, if you'll just come this way and we can get you registered. Lyra, one more thing? If you could just visit a friend of mine on your way out..."

* * *

"So you can bring one Pokemon out with you while you walk, but only one at a time. That is called your Partner Pokemon, whom you can switch out at any time. While resting, you can keep all your pokemon out if you wish. Any questions? No, good, on your way then!" Elm ushered her out the door faster than her feet could carry her and Lyra stood confused at the threshold as the door whooshed closed behind her. Shaking herself, Lyra headed back to her home to show her mother her newest Pokemon quickly before headed to meet this mysterious Mr. Pokemon Elm had told her about.

Lyra wiped her feet on the rug outside her front door and let herself back inside her house where her mother stood waiting.

"Well? Did you get a proper starter Pokemon, and not that Gastly?" She demanded, the crinkles at her eyes showing she was merely jesting. Lyra nodded, scooping up Tango in her arms and presenting him to her mother. Gastly released himself from his Pokeball at that moment, inspecting the little blue water alligator. He stuck his tongue out and waggled it, bulging out his eyes and Tango laughed heartily, reaching towards Gastly and his hand passed right through. It was Tango's turn to have his eyes bulging, this time in disbelief. After a few shared moments, the Pokemon ran off into another room to play.

"Lyra, sweetie, sit down for a second." Lyra's mother gestured towards the table and two chairs that were waiting for them. Lyra took her seat, wondering what her mother could possibly be scolding about this time. Lyra thought all that needed to be said had been said before.

"Lyra, I need you to promise me to stay away from a few places on your journey. The Dark Cave until you have a pokemon who knows Flash, Sprout Tower because it's a breeding ground for battles and it'll be very early on your journey, the Burned Tower because it could fall down around you... But most of all, you must avoid the Whirl Islands. Even with a pokemon who knows how to navigate the whirlpools. It's dangerous and I want you to avoid them at all costs." Her mother got a faraway look in her eyes as if remembering her own journey before shaking her head and squeezing her daughter's hand.

The women both stood and embraced, Lyra finally letting a few nervous tears of her own fall. After she finally found the strength to let go of her mother, the woman who raised her, Gastly and Tango were instantly at her side, providing comfort with a cool, gaseous body and a light nibble on her foot.

* * *

After leaving her mother's home, Lyra set out with Gastly as her Partner Pokemon and headed towards the route outside of town. She had taken off her red jacket due to the sun's glare and was glad she had packed a pair of shorts to change into later. Looking into the forest trail that would lead her to the next city, she took a deep breath and tried to move her feet forward. Her hesitance surprised her and she was relieved when she heard a distinctly male voice calling her back.

"LYRA, WAIT! I have some news!" Ethan, a boy who had turned 19 months ago and had chosen to study under Elm instead of take a journey, was jogging towards her, waving. His black hair was smashed messily under his cap, and his normally pale skin was tanner than she had ever seen it from months of working with Pokemon under the sun. His red tank top and black shorts showed off his physique nicely and Lyra couldn't help but run her eyes over his body appreciatively. After nurturing the world's biggest crush on Ethan all throughout high school, Lyra couldn't quite shake off the fact that Ethan was handsome as sin.

Ethan halted in front of her, apparently not even winded from his lengthy job from what she assumed to be the Pokemon Lab. He looked jittery and nervous, eyes darting around as if looking for something.

"The lab was broken into while we were out back monitoring the field pokemon. All the cameras managed to catch was a kid around our age, tall, broad shoulders, and red hair under the hood he was wearing. He took the Cyndaquil you met today." Ethan said, scratching his neck nervously.

"So what does Elm want me to do about it?" Lyra said, ignoring Gastly as he made faces at her behind Ethan's back.

"Just keep an eye out for him, ok? Don't approach him if you see him, but if you suspect that you have spotted him, immediately call Elm. Or me, actually. Let me give you my PokeGear number..." Ethan plucked her phone out of the side pocket of her backpack and entered some numbers quickly before handing it back. He hesitated a moment before grinning down at Lyra once more.

"And make sure to give me a proper goodbye before you leave for good. I know you're just going to Mr. Pokemon's house and you'll be back in a day or two. But in the meantime, good luck," Ethan winked and sauntered off and Lyra could feel herself grinning at his back.

Gastly popped into her face out of nowhere, snapping her out of her daze and making a disapproving face at her, as if letting herself get distracted by a boy could be the end of all the world.

"Oh shush before I shove you back in the attic," Lyra growled irritably, but she found the taking that first step into Route 29 became just a little bit easier and she started on her way, Gastly trailing behind, but close enough to always be on guard.

* * *

**And here's my first Pokemon fanfic! I really have been sitting on this idea for years and decided to finally write it out. I really, really appreciate reviews and would love to know what you loved and what you felt could be improved.**

**Thank you for reading, seriously, it's flattering.**


	2. Music

**A/N: Here you get to find out a little more about Lyra's mom and dad. Writing their little bit was actually my favorite part of the chapter! And while I originally wanted to make Lyra's father a great pokemon trainer, I ultimately decided against it because this guy is a piece of work, leaving his one year old daughter and wife behind, as mentioned in chapter one. He doesn't deserve to be any kind of great. There's also a lot more in store, this chapter is really the one that gets the ball rolling. I hope y'all enjoy :)**

Ch 2

After breezing through the route that connected New Bark Town and Cherrygrove City with an ease that startled her, Lyra found herself wishing she could take a break. But even if she wanted to let Tango and Ghastly out to play at the small cove where the ocean lapped against the sand or take a guided tour of the small city, she had a mission that she had to complete. The trek to where she stood had taken half a day and it was nearing 4 PM. If she wanted to make it back by sundown, she needed to hurry.

She was almost irritated that she had been sent on this journey as she trekked past the final buildings of Cherrygrove and entered into Route 30. She knew Elm was scatterbrained, but why couldn't Ethan have been sent in her place? She was, after all, on her way to becoming a Pokemon Master. She didn't have confidence in herself, but she sure had confidence in the two little Pokemon that remained stuck to her like glue and she also had confidence in her mother's genes.

Her mother had been great years and years ago, long before she had met Lyra's father. She had amassed a team of Pokemon so powerful that by the time she was pregnant with Lyra at 28, she had already taken on not only the Pokemon League of Kanto and Johto, but had travelled to a northern country called Sinnoh and taken the league challenge there, too. 24 badges still hung proudly over the fireplace mantle in Lyra's home.

When she was a child, she had been intrigued by them and often requested her mother take them down so she could run her chubby fingers over them and dream of far away lands and adventures to be had. The fits that came after her mother stood to put them away were apparently some of the most wild of her childhood. Lyra didn't like to remember that part, and adamantly refused it happened whenever her mother brought it up.

As she grew older, she began to request to see the badges less and less as age allowed her to see the immense pain in her mother's eyes every time she had to look at her badges any closer than a spared glance while she was in the living room. When Lyra was 16, she had been stupid enough to ask where her mother's Pokemon were. The only one that remained had been her starter, Charlie, a grumpy Charizard who never acknowledged Lyra's presence and spent all of his days lazing in the front yard where the sun could beat down on him. He only got up when her mother called for him, but the one time she had seen Charlie battle had been truly terrifying, yet awe-inspiring.

Lyra's mother had decided to participate in a Pokemon battle that her middle school was holding for the students so they could teach the younger kids how the mechanics of a battle worked. They needed volunteers and of course had begged her mother, seeing as she was one of the strongest trainers in this side of Johto. She conceded, but only if they placed Charlie at a type disadvantage, which she insisted was for the safety of the other participant's pokemon. Lyra had scoffed at the time, as she had only seen Charlie bat Pidgeys away with his tail when they came too close, let alone battle one.

When the time for the battle came, Charlie was put up against a magnificent Tyranitar, a Rock/Dark type who was extra powerful offensively and defensively against Charlie's Fire/Flying type. But Lyra was just as blown away as her classmates when her mother and Charlie, nearly one in their thoughts and hearts, destroyed the Tyranitar in a less than ten minute battle. She was forced to field off requests for her mother's, and weirdly enough, Charlie's autographs for months after.

So while Lyra knew Charlie was powerful, she couldn't imagine her mother taking on three pokemon league challenges on just his strength alone. So she had let the question of her mother's other pokemon slip through her mouth before she could stop herself.

That was the day her dreams of reuniting with her father shattered and the last day she ever allowed herself to ask her mother to take her badges down. When her father had left her mother with a one year old baby, that was all he left her with. He had taken her entire Pokemon team, all except her starter, who refused to listen to anyone who wasn't her mother. When Lyra's mom woke the next morning, all her pokemon were gone, except for her loyal Charlie, who had broken free of his Pokeball and returned once he realized what was happening.

Lyra had never particularly liked Charlie before that day, he was mean and never liked to play with her when she was younger like Gastly had when he was still haunting the house. And in Lyra's young mind, that was what pokemon were for: to play with her. And this initial emotion as a child had colored her views on the fire dragon even as she grew. But after learning that story, her respect for Charlie was only eclipsed by her respect for her mother. And the grumpy old Charizard had seemed to sense that, even lowering himself to raise his head and huff at her when she would say goodbye to him while leaving the house, as if to say "Yes, I know, goodbye, now please leave me be."

And so, with the story of Charlie and her mother's badges in mind, Lyra life goal was set for her at age 16: To become a Pokemon Master and love her pokemon so much that they too would respect her like that old curmudgeonly Charizard loved and respected her mother.

Lyra shook herself out of her reverie and reminded herself to get back to the present. None of her pokemon would be as powerful and wonderful to her as Charlie was to her mother if she remained glued in the far past.

While Route 29 had no trainers, the road had been fraught with Sentret, Pidgeys, and Caterpies. Training Gastly and Tango had been no problem. While Gastly used Hypnosis and Lick to their full extent, he eventually learned Curse, which Lyra didn't really like using because it hurt him. Meanwhile, the little water alligator started producing water, resulting in Water Gun and eventually another move developed called Rage. They were moving forward faster than she anticipated and she worried that they might grow too strong before she could even reach Falkner's gym.

She grinned and couldn't help thinking of her first gym battle. Lyra knew Falkner trained Flying type Pokemon and that the pokemon she would be battling against would most likely be dual Normal and Flying, meaning Gastly would have almost no effect on her first gym battle. Lyra liked the challenge but she had a feeling that Tango, who almost never took a battle completely seriously based what she had seen today, wouldn't completely appreciate being the sole star of their first gym battle.

Neither of her pokemon had an inherent need to battle, although they did it well and liked the thrill of victory. Gastly, she found, remained at her side outside of his Pokeball and was content to watch over her. It occurred to Lyra that he might have been doing this her whole life and she never noticed, but she couldn't find a reason why a simple Gastly would find a need to watch over a human girl.

Tango, on the other hand, LOVED battling... As long as it didn't get in the way of his fun. Dancing and hopping sideways to avoid attacks had become his modus operandi during battles, but Lyra had never seen an angrier Pokemon the moment a Caterpie finally hit Tango with a Stringshot attack. He had been caught in one place unable to move or hop and became incensed while stuck. Once it finally wore off, his Rage attack had developed and he politely declined to participate in the next battle, instead gesturing to Gastly's Pokeball. Watching his buddy battle brought back his joy and he gladly battled when a Sentret popped its head out of the grass a few minutes later.

Lyra secretly thought that the world could take a lesson or two from Tango, who seemed to have joy written in his personality code and loved everyone and everything. She smiled and ghosted her fingers over his Pokeball that was latched to her belt. He probably would want to come out and be her Partner Pokemon soon. He hadn't been out since she entered the somewhat sprawling city of Cherrygrove.

Gastly still moved behind Lyra, quiet as a Rattata, and appearing in front of random humans who crossed their path, making faces and generally scaring the daylights out of whoever he pleased. But he was losing his good humor the farther they got from Cherrygrove and closer to Violet City, and Lyra wondered if there might be a connection. She pondered that perhaps Gastly preferred smaller towns, which Violet City definitely was not, since he had lived in one for the whole time she had known him.

But Lyra had no more time to ponder on this as she stepped around some trees and came face to face with a house that could only belong to one Mr. Pokemon. Hesitantly, she approached the door, knocking swiftly three times and waited. Gastly perched near her shoulder and she felt the cool gaseous body envelop her shoulder in that weird sensation she'd known since she was a kid. When the door finally swung open, Lyra's mouth dropped in surprise.

Instead of whoever she expected Mr. Pokemon to be, the famous Professor Oak of Kanto stood in the doorway. There was no mistaking the shock of white hair and his trademark lab coat hanging over a red button down shirt and khaki pants.

"Can I help you?" The elderly man enquired, squinting down at Lyra, who was appropriately star struck and speechless. She tried to gather words to speak, but couldn't quite find any. Another older gentleman poked his head around Oak's shoulder and looked unsurprised.

"You must be the one Elm sent, yes? Well, come in, come in, take a look! Your name was Lyra, correct?" Mr. Pokemon said, nudging past Oak to bring Lyra into the fold and Gastly followed close behind as usual. Professor Oak looked startled when he noticed Gastly and began to speak.

"What an intriguing Gastly, young lady. It's so old, you can tell by the color of the gas around the edges... Lyra, why is this Gastly in your possession? He's nearly a-OW!" Apparently Gastly didn't like being talked about like he wasn't present and had taken his two little teeth and bitten Professor Oak's nose.

"Gastly!" Lyra cried, agape. He had never seen him get irritated enough to harm anyone, and she was blown away. But Oak merely laughed it off in good nature.

"No, no, it's fine. That was my fault. Pokemon have feelings, too, and Gastly here probably didn't like not talking directly to him if I had questions. Isn't that right, Gastly?" Oak held up a hand towards Gastly in a display of peace, but Gastly merely turned away with the dignity of a thousand kings. Oak chuckled and turned toward Lyra.

Mr. Pokemon had disappeared into a backroom, and she could hear him rummaging around for something. She distantly wondered what the hell he kept back there. But Oak grabbed her attention again.

"Now, Mr. Pokemon here mentioned that Elm said something about sending a prodigy's young daughter... Your mother wouldn't happen to be Delilah, would she?" Oak cocked his head to the side, studying Lyra, "You sure look an awful lot like her, so I guess that answers my question!"

Lyra smiled and nodded. Her mother had come from Kanto originally and had gotten her starter from Professor Oak. And they say that Oak never forgets a trainer who he helped start.

"Yes, I remember her, she was one of the most powerful trainers to ever cross my path. She could've taken on Red evenly in a battle, your mother! She got the last pick of the bunch, though. Charlie turned out to be an exciting name in upcoming pokemon, but when he was a Charmander, he was a just a shy little lizard who could barely produce a flame on his tail, let alone from his mouth! One of the least powerful starter pokemon I have ever given to a trainer, but your mother didn't let that stop her!" Oak looked like he was faraway and Lyra took that moment to make a face. She couldn't quite envision grumpy, powerful Charlie ever being shy, little, or frankly not looking like he was going to rip someone's face off just because he could.

"Is this Gastly your starter, Lyra? What an unusual choice!" Oak exclaimed, once again taken in by what he vaguely described as the color of the gas on the edge of Gastly's body.

"No, sir, he's not, not technically, anyways. He haunted my house and decided to come with so he's my first Pokemon, but my official starter is a Totodile. Let me show you, actually!" Lyra returned Gastly to his ball and switched out Tango, who burst out in a show of light and dancing.

Professor Oak bent down to say hello to the little Pokemon and spent several minutes playing, much to Tango's delight. After a few minutes of quiet other than the cries of a joyful pokemon, Lyra wondered once again where Mr. Pokemon had gone to. But Oak straightened up and began to speak again while moving towards the living room.

"Lyra, do you know how truly impressive your mother is? No, I doubt it, she keeps this bit to herself, mostly. Have you heard of the legendary pokemon called Lugia?" Oak said, sitting down on a easy chair and gesturing Lyra to the couch that stood nearby. She complied, plopping heavily down, her legs suddenly feeling the fact that she had walked all the way from New Bark.

"Yes sir, I've heard of Lugia, most everyone has. He's the guardian of the Whirl Islands." Lyra said, letting out a little noise of happiness as she relaxed on the couch. Tango wandered in and hopped up to sit next to her and she began running her hand over his smooth little head.

"Ha, well, that's where he supposedly lives now. But that's not where your mother saw him. Lyra, your mother was the first in a thousand years to encounter Lugia. Did you know that?" Oak dropped that bombshell on her like it was no big deal and Lyra was left wondering why her mother had never told her this. She didn't have much time to ponder as Oak started talking again. Lyra was developing the impression that he liked hearing himself speak.

"And have you ever heard of the legend of the two Ecruteak towers?' Oak had leaned forward in his chair, inspecting her with a face much too serious to be talking about old legends and Lyra wondered why. He continued, taking her silence as permission to do so.

"My family runs generations back in Kanto, but my mother's side came from Johto. The legend has been passed down by word of mouth for centuries. Would you like to hear it?" Oak said, his eyes gleaming, considering her and seemingly assessing her. Lyra nodded.

"In the beginning of Johto, there were two towers that stood tall and silent, keeping watch over one another. The Tin Tower and the Brass Tower were brothers in solidarity and guardians. One held Ho-Oh, the demon bird of the sky. The other held Lugia, who quelled all conflicts. After hundreds of years of harmony, human misdeeds and behavior caused the Brass Tower to go up in flames." Oak paused to catch his breath and Lyra could almost imagine the scenario in her head. Two tall towers, two large birds perched atop, guarding and watching over the pokemon of Johto.

"Ho-Oh, afraid he might be blamed for the fire by humanity, for Ho-Oh was supposedly born of flames, fled from the tower not to be seen again for a hundred years. Lugia, burned and needing to recover, flew to the ocean to relieve his wounds, not realizing that the three Pokemon who still lay within the Brass Tower would go up in flames, never to draw another breath. A century passed and Ho-Oh returned to give life and form to the three Pokemon who lost their lives. They were reincarnated as the Three Great Beasts: Suicune, Raikou, and Entei. Forced to roam the land until they could escape the fire that licked at their heels, the Three Great Beasts move so fast that they can never be seen with the human eye. And Ho-Oh and Lugia both search for a trainer who can prove his worth and call them back home to the Towers, where they will be united as brothers and protectors." Oak ended his tale ominously and Lyra could feel chills going up and down her spine.

"But it's just a legend, right?" Lyra asked in a small voice, realizing with a jolt that she had pulled Tango into her lap and was holding him to calm herself.

"Ah, but of course! There is the Burned Tower in Ecruteak, and of course the Tin Tower that remains standing, but there is no proof that legendary Pokemon ever truly nested there or that three Pokemon died and were reincarnated. And there's ton of variations to the tale, like how many Great Beasts there are, or my favorite: how there was a third tower that was burned completely into ash and never to be seen again. It's all fairytales, Lyra, but good to know the tales of the world which you travel in!" Oak turned towards the door that Mr. Pokemon was coming out of, carrying a simple Pokemon egg.

"I believe it might be the egg of a Fairy type Pokemon!" Mr. Pokemon said excitedly, handing the egg over to Lyra. To Lyra, it looked like any old Pokemon egg, but she just smiled and nodded, promising to let Elm take a look.

Lyra gathered her things, slipping the egg into a protected pocket of her backpack and rose to bid the two men goodbye. Mr. Pokemon merely waved her off, but Oak brought her to the door.

"Lyra, I would check your PokeDex and recommend what to do and how to catch more pokemon, but I believe your destiny isn't to catch all of the pokemon, but to form bonds with the ones you do have. That is the advice I'm giving to you, Lyra. Now have a safe journey and say hello to your mother for me." Oak clapped a hand on Lyra's shoulder and turned away, closing the door behind him, leaving her more confused than ever, although she wasn't sure why.

* * *

"Are you sure, Professor Elm? I don't mind coming back to New Bark." Lyra was sitting under a tree away from the view of Mr. Pokemon's house. After showing Elm what the egg looked like on her PokeGear, the professor had sighed and told her that once again, Mr. Pokemon's discovery was only interesting to himself. It was getting late at that point, 7 PM and the sun was starting to descend.

"No, no, Lyra. It's fine. You continue up towards Violet City, ok? And just keep the egg with you, it should hatch once enough time has passed. I've got to go, good bye!" The phone call ended abruptly and Lyra could feel her temper flare. After all of that, he just leaves her with an egg and no words of advice? She vowed never to do Professor Elm a favor again.

"Whatever, at least I don't have to go all the way home and back again, although I would've liked to see Ethan again..." Lyra mused to herself, scrabbling to her feet and dusting away the leaves that had stuck to her bottom. Tango snapped at them as they fell, thinking it was a game, but Lyra was preoccupied with movement in the trees. She watched for a few moments before deciding it was probably a Pokemon and nothing to worry about.

Gathering her things, Lyra hauled her backpack over her shoulder and made her way to the mouth of the trail that would take her to Violet City. As she neared the trail head, she turned to call Tango and hurry him along.

"Tango, enough, it's time to g-OOF!" Lyra ran into something hard and broad and fell backwards onto her bottom. Tango hurried towards her, and stared warily up at the strange man that Lyra had bumped into.

"As much as I appreciate a woman's body pressed against mine, I really think you should watch where you're going." A cool, smooth sounded from the man and Lyra finally looked up, abashed and angry that he would hit on her and scold her in the same sentence.

The young man was tall, much taller than Lyra herself was, looking close to 6'2". His shoulders were broad and tapered down into a well-muscled body that was fit comfortably in a black and red jacket and black jeans. As Lyra appraised the stranger, she found herself wondering when the last time she had been romantic with a guy was because she was suddenly very desperate for a little male company. His lips were full and wide and white teeth flashed behind them when he spoke.

But when she finally met his eyes, Lyra thought they were some of the prettiest she had ever seen. Gray eyes were relatively common in the region, particularly in Kanto, but she had never seen someone whose eyes seemed to glow almost silver in the setting sun.

"Are you even listening to me? I've been asking you if I hurt you on accident." The man's voice, more tenor than bass, struck Lyra of her daze. His dazzling smile had surely melted a thousand hearts and Lyra couldn't think of a more charming man she had ever met.

"Frankly, no, actually, I'm sorry. Has anyone told you that your voice doesn't really match your body? It's like someone is throwing their voice and you're moving your mouth to match." She giggled nervously and the man's eyes narrowed. Lyra was instantly mortified that she had let those words come out of her mouth. He was so hot, too!

But she realized there were more pressing issues when warning bells went off in her head as she looked over him a second time. The man matched the description Ethan had given her of the guy who robbed the Pokemon Lab!

Realizing she was still on the ground and Tango was nipping at her ankles as if to warn her, she scrambled to her feet, picking up the Trainer ID card that she had caused the man to drop while doing so.

'Age:21, Height:6'1", darn, I was close, Name:-' Lyra was reading of the card to herself discreetly before the young man deftly plucked it out of her hands.

"You don't need to know all that info, sorry." The boy, who seemed much younger now that she knew his age, simpered to her with a fake, apologetic smile, nothing like the charming one he had given her earlier. He tucked the card into his back pocket and made to move past Lyra quickly, but she shot out an arm to stop him.

"What's your name? I know who you are, and I know you stole that Pokemon on your belt from Elm Laboratory!" Lyra said, not expecting it when the stranger actually stopped and turned to address her once more.

"What's it to you, ma'am? Would you like to know my Poke Gear number, too? If you'd like to know, you have to battle it for me first." The boy had the southern twang of one raised in the southern islands of Hoenn and although he seemed to be jesting, his voice held a tone of warning that Lyra recklessly ignored.

"So be it. Go, Tango!' She retreated several steps backwards and Tango took guard in front of her, hopping from one foot to another.

The boy seemed to expect it, and merely threw a Pokeball, unleashing the large Cyndaquil Lyra had met earlier that day, confirming her suspicions. His back erupted into flames and he looked ready to battle.

"Smokescreen, go!" The boy roared and Cyndaquil let out a giant haze of smog that covered the clearing, causing Lyra to panic.

"Tackle, Cyndaquil!" The boy called again and Lyra knew he had been training extensively all day because Cyndaquil didn't start off knowing the move Smokescreen.

Although she couldn't see Tango, she could hear him cry out as he got hit. She bit her lip, worried. Tango and Gastly had been stronger than all of the wild Pokemon they had encountered while travelling to Mr. Pokemon's house by a wide margin and this was the first time she was faced with a trained Pokemon on the same level as hers.

"Tango, you just have to hit him once with a Water Gun! We have the advantage here, ok? Just listen for him, the smog is clearing now anyways!" Lyra shifted from foot to foot, almost like a sad imitation of Tango's dance, trying to look past the slowly clearing haze. She was blasted by a jet stream of water moments later, which pushed her to the ground and got in her nose and mouth. Coughing and hacking, she was once again worried that she wouldn't have what it takes to defeat this stranger if Tango was so turned around he accidentally attacked her.

"Tango, switch tactics. When you know he's near, use Scratch attack!" Lyra could just make out the shapes of Tango and Cyndaquil, and watched the fire pokemon near the little water alligator, unbeknownst to him.

"On your left, now! Scratch!" Totodile lunged left as his trainer demanded and got the Cyndaquil right in the face. Reeling back, the Cyndaquil was momentarily distracted and Lyra took her opportunity.

"Now, Tango, use Water Gun!" The smoke screen had almost fully faded at this point and Lyra had the satisfaction of watching her first official Pokemon battle victory. Tango blasted the fire pokemon with water and he collapsed, defeated.

Tango stared, stunned as if he had no idea what had just happened, surprised that he had managed to win. Lyra quickly took the opportunity to hurry to the Cyndaquil, pulling a Potion out of her bag as she did so.

"What are you doing?" The smooth, cool voice of the boy was rougher, angry. He had approached while she sprayed and applied the Potion to the Cyndaquil, who was now stirring.

"There was a type advantage and your Cyndaquil, or should I say Elm's Cyndaquil, was blasted really hard. I'm just making sure he's ok until you can get him to a Pokemon Center." Lyra replied, replacing the empty Potion bottle back into her pack. As she stood, the boy returned Cyndaquil to his ball and stared at her, anger and defiance on her face.

"I owe you a name, then. It's Silver." Silver had dropped his sweet-talking act, but Lyra could still see the charisma floating in his eyes.

"Your name is not Silver. You're telling me your parents named you after the color of your eyes?" She inquired, itching to take the Pokeball that held Cyndaquil back and return it to Elm.

"My parents are none of your business!" The boy snarled and Lyra took a step back, suddenly remembering that she was standing in an abandoned clearing alone with a boy much bigger than her with only Gastly and Tango to protect her. The sun had finally set and the only light remaining was the glow that it left, soon to be extinguished by the stars.

"How did you even defeat me, anyways? I'm just going to chalk this up to you distracting me during the battle." Silver looked into Lyra's eyes and the meaning of his words and the fact that she knew he wasn't saying them merely to flatter caused an electricity to surge down her spine to the bottom of her stomach. Silver surveyed her face for a few more seconds before turning.

"What's your name, anyways?" Lyra looked at his back, confused. She didn't know why he would want to know it.

"Lyra. My name is Lyra." She replied

"Like the musical instrument..." Silver said in realization, turning sharply back to look at Lyra. She startled at his sudden movement and how serious the tone of his voice had turned, not understanding the significance.

"I've gotta go." The boy said, walking quickly out of the clearing. By the time Lyra had gathered up her things and chased after him onto the trail, he was gone, blending into the trees that he had popped out of in the first place.

* * *

**I think Lyra kinda has Charlie up on a pedestal, don't you? She really likes that grumpy old lizard. Like I said before, I really, REALLY appreciate reviews, it feeds my soul and makes me work a little harder to get the new chapters out to y'all sooner!**

**Thanks for reading, it's legit flattering. :)**


	3. Forced to Return

Ch 3

Whether or not Lyra believed that she was ready for her first Gym battle, she arrived in Violet four days after her encounter with the mysterious Silver. After her very first Pokemon battle, the flood gates seemed to open and she faced numerous Bug Catchers and Youngster trainers whom she was sure weren't legally allowed to battle yet. The sheer amount of walking and training she had caused her to break into a sprint in relief and happiness when she spotted the looming dome of the Violet City Pokemon Center.

Skidding into the doors of the large Center at nearly 4 PM barely even made the nurse on duty look up. The other trainers milling about, however, snapped their heads about and around to assess the newcomer and wonder why she was so happy to be in a simple Pokemon Center.

Lyra could almost hear them dismissing her as a new trainer in their heads, as they slowly turned back to whatever they had previously been occupied with. One girl with pink hair who seemed to be only a year or two older than Lyra held her gaze the longest though before turning back to her magazine. Lyra's attention was brought back to the nurse in front of her when she cleared her throat.

"Hello, I'm Nurse Joy of the Violet City Pokemon Center. Can I help you?" The woman was beautiful, nearly thirty with blue eyes and pink, almost light red hair and Lyra was startled by her beauty.

"Oh, um, I just need to rest my Pokemon. I'll also need a room for a few nights." Lyra replied.

The money she won from the various battles she had won since she had set out from her hometown, plus the money she had been saving up since she had turned 16 easily covered the amount of money it would cost, with lots left over to put back in her wallet with satisfaction. After handing off the two Pokeballs to the nurse, she gladly took her room key and retired to her room.

Lyra flung herself onto the bottom bunk of the bed in the room as the top bunk was already occupied by someone's things and tried to close her eyes and rest her mind, but the events of a few days before kept replaying in her mind like a bad film.

Why would Silver not want to reveal his real name? Lyra could imagine he didn't want her going to the police with his name, but she somehow knew it wasn't that. He was also touchy about his family and Lyra wondered if his parents were maybe famous or well-known and he didn't want it getting out that the son of a prestigious family would steal a starter. But if he was the son of a well-known family, he wouldn't have to go around stealing a Pokemon he could've rightly taken. And why was he so power hungry? He had seemed way too disappointed in his Cyndaquil after its loss to be a normal reaction.

Lyra wasn't sure what his problem was, but she hoped she wouldn't have to deal with him and his confusing story anymore. He was good looking, but she had somewhat belatedly remembered that she was supposed to have a crush on the handsome lab assistant, Ethan after her encounter with Silver.

On and on her mind chugged through her confused and muddled thoughts, cycling through her fear of facing her first gym and Ethan and Silver and when she would catch her next Pokemon until she fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

Lyra was woken 5 hours later by a poke to her knee and a pair of pink eyes. Groaning, she rolled over and ignored whoever was trying to wake her. Another insistent poke, on her cheek this time, caused her eyes to fly open.

"What? Can I help you?" Lyra asked, rolling back to face the girl who was insisting on waking her up.

"It's 9 PM, I thought you might have wanted to be woken up. I'm Whitney, by the way." Whitney stuck her hand out and Lyra took it hesitantly. Through her still half-asleep gaze, she recognized the pink haired girl who had stared at her in the lobby.

"I mean, I wanted to sleep through the night, to be honest..." Lyra trailed off, hoping the girl would get the hint. There was no such luck and the girl plopped herself down on the bed besides Lyra.

"Well, you thought wrong. Sprout Tower is just getting started tonight, and you'll want to visit while it's dark." Whitney continued to babble and Lyra realized she must be the other girl staying in her room as Whitney stood and began to rummage around the bags that were on the top bunk. Yawning, Lyra swung her legs onto the ground and realized she had fallen asleep in her regular clothes.

"What exactly is Sprout Tower?" Lyra asked as she slipped her feet into her shoes that had been haphazardly thrown at the foot of the bed and began to tie her laces, having no idea why she was going along with the bubbly, hyper girl.

"It's this tower in the most northern part of town. It's supposedly built around a giant Bellsprout back in the day and that's why the pillar in the center is always moving. There's tons of Rattata and Gastly at night and the occasional Bellsprout, of course. The monks will also battle you at night, and if you defeat them all and their master, you get a prize!" Whitney had grabbed her travelling pack from her larger rolling suitcase and Lyra wondered why a travelling trainer would bring so much to lug around.

"Well, Gastly aren't that impressive, I've already got one." Lyra replied, standing from the bed and remembering that she had to retrieve her two Pokemon from the Nurse Joy at the front desk.

"That's pretty cool, I have a friend who trains solely Ghost types, but I just like whatever is cutest. " Whitney said, swinging the door open and allowing Lyra to pass through first. Lyra wondered if that was shallow, but then remember the only reason she had chosen Tango had been because she liked his little dance and decided not to judge.

As Whitney kept chattering on about her pokemon, Lyra found herself relaxing and enjoying the girl's company. After days of solo treatment and only meeting men trainers, she was ecstatic for a little girl talk. They talked animatedly through the walk to the front desk, Nurse Joy handing her back her Pokeballs, the introduction of Tango and Gastly to Whitney, and half of the walk through the city.

Lyra learned that Whitney was only a year older than her at 20, she had begun training as soon as she had turned 19, and her Pokemon were all of the Fairy or Normal type. Lyra was amazed that she had Fairy Pokemon, as there were only about 89 recorded in all of Johto and Kanto. Whitney assured her that they were only Pokemon who had been thought to be Normal type before they had realized there was a new Pokemon type, but Lyra was still impressed.

Violet City was a lot bigger than Lyra had expected and she felt truly like a small town girl in the city. It was the biggest metropolitan area she had ever seen, not counting her vacations to see her mother's family in Saffron City, all the way in Kanto. She didn't travel much before her journey and seeing such large cities was still new to her, although Whitney remained unimpressed.

"I was born and raised in Goldenrod City, so it's nothing in comparison." Whitney had said when Lyra had commented on the size of the city. Lyra wondered to herself how large Goldenrod City must be to inspire no awe in Whitney.

About halfway to Sprout Tower, Lyra noticed that Gastly was becoming even more withdrawn, as he hadn't tried to scare anyone on the walk so far, not even Whitney. He merely floated along a step or two behind the girls and kept quiet.

"I'm worried about Gastly, he isn't acting normally right now." Lyra said, halting her steps and Whitney followed suit. The two girls turned towards Gastly, who was out as Lyra's Partner. He stared back solemnly and Whitney seemed to brush it off.

"He's probably from Sprout Tower. A lot of the Ghost types come from Sprout Tower before they move to different parts of the region. He's probably just dreading the family reunion, right Gastly?" Whitney said, pulling a treat out of her bag and tossing it towards the gas blob Pokemon. Gastly caught the treat in his mouth, chewing slowly before swallowing. He bobbed his body in affirmation after he finished, confirming Whitney's theory and slightly cheering up at the treat, but not enough to come any closer.

"Gastly, you came to my house from Sprout Tower all those years ago? You made a long journey, and I'm sure it was for a reason. You don't have to come in, I can bring Tango out." The two girls had started walking again and Gastly shrugged, non-committal.

The girls talked in slightly more hushed whispers out of respect for Gastly's nerves and before they knew it, they reached the bridge that lead over a small lake to where Sprout Tower stood, tall and looming. It was lit from the outside with dark orange spotlights, highlighting the old structure of the tower, surely one of the oldest in the region. Lyra and Whitney stopped to take it all in and Lyra noticed the slight movement from side to side of the tower, as Whitney had describer earlier.

"The tower is calm tonight. I've never seen the swaying of the central beam so controlled and subdued." Whitney marveled as she started to make her way across the bridge.

When Lyra took the first step to follow her, there was a commotion as Bird types who had been nesting in the trees surrounding the lake suddenly all started squawking and flew out of the trees, causing a huge rustle. They darted across the sides of the lake, completely obscuring the two girls from each other by the sheer numbers of them.

The chaotic noise and pandemonium cause Whitney to scream, and Lyra couldn't see her through the mass of Pokemon flying around them, and could only hope that they hadn't attacked her. The birds started to clear, slowly but surely, and Lyra caught a glimpse of the tower through breaks in the birds. A great groan was head and Lyra watched in fear and amazement as the swaying of Sprout Tower came to an abrupt halt with a loud gong-like song. There was a beat of silence and then she heard it.

"Not yet..." Lyra spun around in shock as a calm, raspy voice sounded in her ear. But there was nothing there, only Gastly who floated there, looking as freaked out as she was.

"I hate Flying type Pokemon!" Whitney said from a few feet ahead and Lyra turned her head towards her. She had almost forgotten that Whitney was with her.

"Did you hear that?!" Lyra cried, hurrying to catch up, even as a ball of dread formed in the pit of her stomach.

"What, the birds? I'm pretty sure my family back in Goldenrod heard them." Whitney replied flippantly, although she couldn't quite hide the look of amazement in her eyes as she looked over towards Lyra.

"No, it was the voice of a man... But like a man who hasn't spoken in years, raspy and stuff." Lyra said hesitantly, shaking her head. They both continued on the bridge, a strange sense of foreboding shared between them. It took awhile before Lyra noticed that Gastly wasn't following her. He was still floating where the bridge met land, refusing to move.

"Gastly...?" Lyra said, trying to ignore the vacant look in his eyes. She pulled out Gastly's Pokeball from her belt and pointed it towards Gastly, intent on returning him.

"Good, leave now. It's not time for you yet..." The same voice sounded and this time Lyra screamed, dropping Gastly's ball and causing Whitney to jump up and scream out of shock, too.

"Oh my Mew, Lyra! Why are you screaming, what's wrong?" Whitney cried once she recovered from her shock and hurried to Lyra's side.

"You can't tell me you didn't hear it, that time, Whitney, it was plain as day!" Lyra said, near tears at this point. Gastly remained shock-still at the bridge's entrance, eyes trained unerringly on Lyra.

"Lyra, you're scaring me, stop." Whitney said, her voice choking up and her eyes filling with tears and Lyra felt like she was going crazy.

"I'm sorry, Whitney, maybe we should just drop this idea." Lyra said, trying to calm her shaking voice. She grabbed Gastly's Pokeball where it had almost rolled into the water and took Whitney's arm, guiding the crying girl back to where Gastly still was, though his eyes remained fixed on the Tower. By the time Lyra and Whitney reached solid ground again, Sprout Tower had started to sway ominously again and Lyra fastened her pace even more.

The trio made their way back towards the Pokemon Center. Whitney was slowly calming as they got farther from the tower, though she remained convinced that the tower was haunted and Lyra was inclined to agree. They hadn't made it ten minutes away before a mop of red hair connected to a broad shouldered body stepped out of an alley, blocking their path.

"Lyra, right? It's strange how Sprout Tower didn't want to let you enter its doors, isn't it?" Silver drawled in his distinctly Southern Isles accent, a Cheshire Cat smirk crawling slowly up his face and Lyra could swear she felt Whitney actually swoon beside her.

"You know damn well that my name is Lyra, and it's not that the tower didn't want me to enter, that's a weird thing to say." She said quietly, patience wearing thin after the night's escapades. Gastly was at attention for the first time since they had started to make their way to Sprout Tower, glowering at Silver.

"I think you underestimate the region and its secrets, Lyra. What a gorgeous Gastly, I assume he's very old." Silver replied, studying the Ghost Pokemon with unreadable, beautiful silver eyes. Gastly bared his two little teeth at Silver and Lyra was vividly reminded of how the little ball of gas had tried to take a chunk out of Professor Oak's nose the last time someone mentioned his age.

"So how are we going about it this time, Silver? Are you gonna play smooth until I upset you again? Don't try that charming shit on me, alright? It's fake and I don't appreciate it." Lyra snapped, feeling her anger flare deep within her. Silver narrowed his eyes and didn't respond, turning to Whitney.

"What are you doing, playing around in Violet City? Don't you have a post to return to? Or can I assume you were sent here?" Silver called to her, his voice growing out of the fake smoothness it adapted without thought and transforming into the rougher tone that was more natural. Whitney's eyes widened and she grew pale in response, narrowing her eyes before replying.

"I don't know who you are, but you don't know jack about anything, dude. Keep your mouth shut." Whitney bit back, crossing her arms and stepping so that she was slightly in front of Lyra.

"Oh, a secret, huh? Fine, I won't reveal it to her, you can do it on your own. But I know who you are, and I'm not talking about your occupation." He replied before turning back to Lyra.

"I'd ask you to battle, but I just defeated the Old Man Sage in Sprout Tower. He was weak. And of course I was not. It makes me wonder if there are any worthwhile trainers in this world. Ones who don't get by on just their looks to distract." Silver's voice turned tempestuous again.

Lyra had no idea what his problem was, only that he seemed to be mad that he was attracted to her. She could definitely say the feeling was mutual. The last thing she needed was to want some punk ass bully who had already managed to insult her normally talkative new friend into silence. So Lyra just ignored his words, staring him down calmly until he chuckled and turned away.

"Until next time, then, little canary. You keep singing a big game with that name and those words of yours, but you're not powerful enough yet to actually go through with them." His words were sharp, but almost intimate. Lyra was so startled at the use of a nickname that she barely registered the other words he was saying.

"Don't call me that!" She yelled half-heartedly at his retreating back. Once again, Lyra was left confused and uncomfortably warm in the wake of an encounter with this strange boy who was nothing but a petty criminal.

She felt something shake in her bag and because she was impatient with the constant stream of mysterious happenings, she ripped it open. Inside, the little egg that Mr. Pokemon had given her had started to move for the first time, almost as if responding to the situation. She marveled at the slowly shaking egg.

"Wipe the drool off, doll, you're embarrassing yourself." Whitney giggled, interrupting Lyra's stream of thoughts, although the pink haired girl was still clearly shaken up from the encounter and was attempting to break the intense air.

"Get real." Lyra rolled her eyes, and zipped her backpack up. But Whitney had found a fun new game in teasing Lyra and continued all the way back to the Pokemon Center.

* * *

The next morning found Lyra hunched over a toilet, emptying her stomach although there was nothing in it. Her gym battle with Falkner loomed an hour away and she knew she was going to lose. Whitney stayed by her side, holding her long brown hair back and rubbing her back.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with? I can make a very convincing cheer squad. GO TEAM!" Whitney ended with a yell, clapping her hands together twice to punctuate each word.

Lyra shook her head no, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and rising to the sink. After rinsing her mouth out, she turned back to Whitney who was sitting balanced on the edge of the bathtub.

"Look, I appreciate it, but if I go down in flames, I want to do it alone without the humiliation of someone else watching! And it's already almost time... I need to shower first." Lyra said, happy to have support, but not wanting it at the moment. Whitney nodded in reply, jumping up and leaving the bathroom.

"I'll be shopping, then! Message me the moment the dust settles!" She said happily before closing the door behind her and leaving Lyra to her own thoughts of self-doom.

After a quick shower and change into her trusty outfit and hair bow, Lyra took Tango out to the park to have a pep talk. She knew he would be going this battle alone and hoped to make him more comfortable with the idea.

When Lyra released him, he burst out with an overabundance of energy and it took Lyra several minutes to calm him down. Once he finally did, Lyra sat criss-cross on the grass and put the little water alligator in her lap, facing her.

"Tango, you're gonna be going it alone today. Gastly isn't going to be any help, I'm afraid. I'm worried that I won't be a strong enough trainer to support you. If you'd like, we can postpone this match, I won't be upset." Lyra said, tapping at his little snout.

Tango stared at her before he opened his mouth and shot a weak stream of water at her face, which still managed to drench her. He giggled in his language at her face of shock and appall before getting serious once again.

"Tototototo. Totodile. Dile." He said, all the seriousness he could muster.

"Um, Tango, I don't really know what you just said," At this, Tango narrowed his eyes, "but I can guess. We will go to the gym then. But first, let's enjoy the day a little." Lyra said, a little miffed at her makeup dripping because of his water, but happy that Tango believed in her. She brought out Gastly and the two best buddies, ecstatic to see each other again after their long separation (even though it had been only a few hours), decided to play tag and Lyra watched, feeling her nerves calm at the sight of the two Pokemon she had already bonded with.

* * *

Falkner was a blue haired, black eyed teenager who was slightly shorter than average, dressed in traditional clothing. He had an intense, eager to prove look in his eyes and Lyra half-heartedly waved across the field.

Seeing that Falkner was probably her age or even younger only made Lyra more anxious about their battle. What kind of prodigy is already the leader of a Pokemon Gym? Noting Lyra's wave, Falkner merely smiled mildly at Lyra before introducing himself.

"I'm Falkner, the Leader of Violet Gym. My father was leader before me and his mother before that. I'm a man of the Flying type pokemon, and I can't stand Electric type! Are you ready?" He stated evenly, not breaking eye contact with Lyra once. She got the distinct feeling that he had rehearsed the same phrase over and over again in his mirror.

"I'm ready. I'm a first Gym class trainer." Lyra replied, ignoring Tango gnawing at her shoe and Falkner's condescending smirk at the small water alligator.

"So I'm your first Gym battle then?" He asked and Lyra nodded.

"Right, you will face two of my pokemon with however many of yours you like. Let's go." As he finished the words, the stadium started to creak and slowly descent upwards. Lyra grasped at the handles of her trainer box, suddenly understanding why they were there.

Once the arena was up nearly three stories tall, Falkner called his first Pokemon.

"Spearow, I choose you!" A small bird Pokemon with red wings, a brown head, and a black body burst forth, glaring at Lyra from where he flapped his wings.

Lyra crouched down and gently detached Tango's mouth from her shoe, and brought him straight to eye level.

"It's the first real gym match, Tango, let's take this one seriously." Lyra said and Tango nodded his head once. He then completely ignored Lyra's words and skipped happily out onto the field, causing Falkner's facade to break as he let out a guffaw.

"Ladies, first." Falkner said and Lyra wanted to wipe the smug look off his face. If he thought she was gonna be an easy win, then she was angry enough to try and prove him wrong.

"Tango, use Bite!" Lyra yelled, pointing emphatically at the Spearow, and to Falkner's great surprise and Lyra's even greater satisfaction, Tango jumped off the floor like a Politoed and wrapped his mouth around Spearow's right wing.

Spearow tried valiantly to keep himself aloft with only one wing and a 21 lb Totodile dragging him down. However, he couldn't fling Tango off of him and the two came crashing to the floor, Tango hopping away from the crumpled Bird Pokemon.

The impact had fainted the Spearow and Lyra stared agape at Tango's power. Falkner had an equally astonished expression and he fumbled with the Pokeballs around his waist, clumsily returning Spearow after almost dropping the ball.

Lyra began to feel bad for him at this point. It was clear he wanted to prove himself, but as Lyra gained more confidence, she knew that it wouldn't be in this battle that he would. When Tango came dancing on his tiptoes back to her, she wondered if the little water alligator was gloating.

But it didn't matter to Lyra as she swept the Totodile into her arms and spun him in a circle, Tango giggling gleefully in his language.

"It's not over, so don't celebrate yet." Falkner cried from across the stadium but he had lost his bravado and he was visibly near tears. Lyra set down Tango out of respect and hoped to Mew that he wouldn't cry because she'd probably end up crying out of guilt.

She sent Tango back out onto the arena and Falkner took another Pokeball off of his belt.

"Pidgeotto, I choose you!" He flung the ball high into the air and out popped a beautiful Pidgeotto, her brown body and red crest shining beautifully, clearly the work of painstaking grooming.

"I've never seen a more elegant Pokemon!" Lyra yelled across the arena. She normally wouldn't compliment another trainer's Pokemon mid-battle, but this Pidgeotto was clearly one of the most well-taken care of that she had ever seen.

Falkner seemed startled at the compliment but managed to gain a little of his momentum back because of it. And he wouldn't make the mistake of letting Lyra attack first again.

"Pidgeotto, go ahead and use Air Tackle!" Pidgeotto responded immediately and slammed her body into Tango before swooping up high again. Tango skid across the arena from the impact before righting himself with a wince.

"Hit him out of the air with your Water Gun attack!" Lyra cried. Tango would not lose this battle, not if she could help it.

Tango attempted once, twice, and another before he finally hit Pidgeotto, who wouldn't be taken down as easily as Spearow had. She was blasted a few feet backwards, cart wheeling wings over claws, but righted herself while remaining air bound.

Not hesitating for a second, Pidgeotto dive-bombed in for a perfect Wing Attack, her wings colliding neatly with Tango's head, knocking him off balance and to the floor once more. This time, he didn't get up immediately. He remained on the ground, panting, before he glared and got back to his little feet.

To Lyra's huge surprise, he started dancing again, shooting water jets as fast as he could out of his mouth at Pidgeotto. She tried to dodge as best as she could, but eventually, too many streams were coming at her at a fast pace and Lyra took her chance.

"Now, Totodile, use Rage attack!" Lyra screamed, desperate to win. She wanted her mother to beam at her on a video phone call, she wanted Charlie to acknowledge her, she wanted to bounce up and down with Whitney in happiness, and most of all, she wanted her Pokemon to feel good in their abilities and power.

So when Totodile managed to jump high enough and hit Pidgeotto across the head hard with his tail, knocking Pidgeotto to floor in a faint, Lyra couldn't help it. Tears of joy started streaming down her face and she ran to Tango's side immediately with a Potion, barely noticing that Falkner had done the same.

Tango was fine, just a little dizzy from being hit on the head, with various scrapes on different parts of his body. He seemed more in awe and shocked that he had managed to beat two Pokemon the were trained by a Gym Leader on his own than anything. He began to gnaw on Lyra's shoe again and Lyra wondered if that was his way to calm himself.

Falkner and Lyra rose to their feet at the same time as equals, despite Lyra's thorough thrashing. Falkner eyed her wearily and his eyes were rimmed with red and Lyra wondered if he had been crying while attending to Pidgeotto.

"That was an amazing battle, no doubt. You're worthy of the Zephyr Badge." Falkner whispered begrudgingly, so quiet that Lyra had to strain to hear him.

As he handed over the badge, Lyra trembled and held back more tears. As she lifted the Zephyr Badge to shine directly into the light, she knew she had found her calling.

* * *

**Sorry for such a heavy delay, it's finals week!**


	4. Three

Ch. 4

As promised, Lyra sent Whitney a message as soon as she had managed to defeat Falkner, resulting in Lyra being nearly tackled to the ground as soon as she emerged from Violet City Gym.

"I knew you could do it! I knew! Tango, you little doll!" Whitney cried, coming down to Tango's level after releasing Lyra. She grabbed a treat, similar to the one she had given Gastly, and held it out for Tango. He nearly took off her hand in his excitement to get to the treat, but Whitney barely even noticed.

"Ok, let's see the badge!" She cried and Lyra complied, drawing the left lapel of her jacket away from her body to reveal the badge pinned neatly inside. Whitney gushed over the badge, commenting on its unique shape of a feather bent into an upside down U and how shiny it looked.

After chattering for a few more moments, the two girls started to walk towards the Pokemon Center.

"So why haven't I met any of your Pokemon, Whitney? Do you have any Pokemon other than your Clefairy?" Lyra asked, merely asking the question to pass the time. Whitney's smile froze in place and she seemed rather uncomfortable. But then a distraction arrived in the form of Ethan, Lyra's high school crush and Professor Elm's lab assistant.

"LYRA! Hey, over here!" He had been waiting in front of the Pokemon Center, wearing his lab coat over his clothing with his hair smoothed down. He look professional and absolutely scrumptious.

"Lyra, where do you meet these kind of guys? I literally know only one guy as handsome as him or that guy from last night." Whitney was in amazement as Ethan, more subdued than normal, straightened his lab coat and headed over to greet the two girls.

"Lyra, how are you? And who is this?" Ethan turned his mega-watt grin onto Whitney and Lyra felt disappointed.

One of the reasons she had never shared her feelings for him in high school was that he was always friendly with a multitude of women and she felt that she could never measure up. And when he turned his attention to Whitney, it was a glaring reminder. Lyra suddenly felt lesser next to exotic Whitney with her pink hair and large eyes framed with the longest lashes a man could ever want on a woman.

"I'm Ethan, one of Professor Elm's lab assistants. What's your name?" Ethan asked Whitney, who turned shy all of a sudden. She mumbled something incomprehensible and darted inside the Pokemon Center, reminding Lyra of how badly she didn't want Silver to reveal who she was last night. For the first time, she wondered if she should be suspicious of Whitney.

"Alright, that was strange. Anyways, Lyra, Elm sent me to teach you how to catch a Pokemon." Ethan didn't let Whitney's weird behavior bother him and instead turned all his attention back towards Lyra, who was feeling less than friendly towards him at that moment.

"Oh, thanks, but I know how." She replied. She turned away and started to head towards the double sliding doors of the Pokemon Center. But Ethan reached forward and caught Lyra's hand in his, tugging her back gently. She still wasn't having it, however, and coolly detached her hand from his.

"Oh, sorry, I get a little personal sometimes, I forget some people aren't as comfortable with physical contact like I am." Ethan had picked up on her discomfort, but had thought it was merely because he had grabbed her hand without her consent.

Lyra felt guilty, knowing that Ethan was the kind of guy who didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings or make them feel bad. There was no way of him knowing about her somewhat lingering attraction towards him and he definitely hadn't asked who Whitney was just to make Lyra feel like crap. She felt silly and tried to let her anger go, and let out a sigh.

"It's fine, Ethan. Besides, I lied, I don't really know how to catch a Pokemon. Let me go grab some Pokeballs from my room." Lyra replied with a sheepish grin. She really didn't as she hadn't caught either of her Pokemon up until now.

Ethan nodded, still smiling and oblivious to the fact the he had hurt her. Lyra headed towards her room, feeling lower than dirt.

Ethan had been an upstanding guy since she had met him back in the 3rd grade. He had always been kind to everyone, not even bullying the kids who were typically bullied by popular kids like him. He was everyone's friend and made sure to keep it that way. Lyra also resolved to talk to Whitney and apologize to her, too.

She approached the door to their shared room but stopped upon hearing Whitney talking on the phone. Lyra had an incurable nosy streak and hid behind the door to listen, even though she knew eavesdroppers never heard anything good.

"Yes, I'm friends with her now. It didn't take very long, she's pretty trusting... No, I don't think she suspects anything at all..." Whitney whispered, and Lyra chanced a peak around the door frame. She was speaking into a phone with her back facing Lyra, staring outside their window to the city outside.

Lyra inhaled sharply and backed away from the door, before sprinting back towards the entrance. Whitney was up to something, and she was worried that the girl wasn't what she thought. They _had_ become strangely close over the course of a single day, but Lyra had chalked it up to simply girl bonding. She hadn't met a female for four days before she saw Whitney and was desperate for a little female company.

Her best friend had moved to Kanto to start her Pokemon journey and she hadn't seen nor heard from the girl in months. She just figured all she wanted was a little but of friendship and Whitney had wanted the same thing.

She must have worn her thoughts on her face because when she came back to Ethan, he looked at her in surprise.

"Lyra, are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." Ethan said, catching up to Lyra's stride as she kept walking.

"I'm, fine, just out of Pokeballs. I was just wondering where they had gone!" Lyra laughed, clearly fake yet Ethan bought it. Kind though he may be, Ethan wasn't prone to understanding people's feelings.

"Oh, that's it? Lyra, let me get you some! I have plenty of money working with Elm, I just needed an excuse to spend it on you!" He grinned at her and grabbed her hand, completely forgetting that he thought earlier she didn't like physical contact.

But Lyra didn't mind and let his enthusiasm sweep them away.

* * *

"And that's how you catch a Pokemon!" Ethan said happily, scooping up the Pokeball that now held a small Bellsprout.

"Okay, but what if it escapes?" Lyra said, worried.

The two teenagers were camped out in Route 32, which was directly south of Violet City. They had been swarmed instantly by a barrage of Rattata, Pidgey, and Bellsprout as soon as they had stepped into the wilderness. But Lyra wasn't interested in any of those Pokemon and wondered if she would have to face her next Gym Leader with only two Pokemon once again.

"Then you try to whittle down its energy a little more and throw another ball! Paralyzing the Pokemon or putting it to Sleep are also good techniques." Ethan said and they moved deeper into the path. Tango trailed behind, snapping at the occasional Butterfree that flew by and giggling. They came across a clearing and a stretch of water with a long dock greeted them to their right. Men were camped all down it, fishing lines in the water and not a care in their eyes.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a flash of light towards the forest on her left. She turned towards the sudden bright flash, curious as a Delcatty, and wandered towards the general direction of the light. What she came across was possibly the most adorable Pokemon she had ever seen.

A blue lamb-like Pokemon with light and fluffy yellow wool was tackling a Geodude, and Lyra must have caught the tail end of the battle, as the Geodude, heavily injured, turned and fled towards the cave she could see looming over the horizon.

"That's a Mareep." Ethan whispered in her ear. Lyra, who hadn't heard him sneak up behind him, cried out in shock. She jumped two feet into the air and tumbled forward, catching the Mareep's attention.

The Mareep, which Lyra imagined was probably female, turned to look at her, blue and black striped ears and tail twitching. At the end of said tail was a large yellow jewel that gleamed in the sun.

The Mareep stared Lyra down as if to challenge her and Lyra responded accordingly.

"Tango, get out there and help me catch your new teammate!" Lyra cried and Tango bounced into action.

Mareep wasted no time in unleashing a Thundershock attack and Tango was stopped abruptly, freezing in place. Mareep then tackled him to the ground, effectively knocking him out in less than 30 seconds. The electricity that Mareep had released seconds before still ran rampant, however, and Lyra felt little zaps crawl up her spinal cord.

Lyra gaped and turned to Ethan, who was watching the scene in equal measures of shock.

"Lyra, I don't think this is just any wild Mareep, send out Gastly!" Ethan yelled, barely dodging a stray strand of electricity that had zipped towards him.

"Got it!" Lyra cried, flinging Gastly's Pokeball out with all her might. Gastly popped out, vaguely confused until he saw Tango's fainted body and the cowering forms of both Lyra and Ethan.

"Gastly, use Hypnosis!" Lyra screamed, barely avoiding a beam of lightning. Gastly responded accordingly and concentrated on Mareep. The air seemed to shimmer and move as Ghastly stared her down. Mareep barely even struggled as she slumped to the ground, dead asleep.

Lyra took one of the Pokeballs Ethan had so generously bought for her and threw it at the Mareep. It dropped to the ground and jiggled for nearly a minute as Lyra watched tensely before sealing.

"Ok, if that Mareep was so powerful offensively, how come it let you catch it without weakening it?" Ethan said, approaching the Pokeball and handing it off to Lyra.

"I'm not really sure, Ethan. Go, Cici!" Lyra cried, releasing the Mareep. She came out of the Pokeball still asleep and Lyra quickly slung her back pack off her shoulders, rummaging around inside for an Awakening.

After administering the Awakening to the newly christened Cici, she watched the Mareep wake up and hoped that she wouldn't cause any more trouble. But Cici yawned when she came to, looked around for a bit, and promptly fell back asleep.

"Did the Awakening work...?" Lyra asked, examining the now empty bottle to see what could've gone wrong.

Ethan laughed and plucked the bottle out of Lyra's hands. Gastly was floating over Cici, a curious look in his eyes before motioning at Lyra and talking to her in his language. Lyra was slowly starting to understand what her Pokemon told her, but she had a long way to go before she could understand the long string of "Gastly" coming out of his mouth.

"I think he's saying that she just likes to sleep a lot anyways...?" Lyra guessed, turning back to Ethan, who nodded in agreement.

"Well, since things here have calmed down so nicely, I'm thinking we can take a short break before we head to the Unown Ruins. I think we should go check those out today, too. Now, tell my exactly you named your Mareep Cici?" Ethan suggested, slumping back against a tree and falling to the forest floor.

"Well, her fur is so fluffy and soft like cotton candy, and both start with the letter 'C' and I came up with Cici!" Lyra laughed. She first took the time to give Tango a Revive before coming to sit down next to Ethan. When she looked up she could see the clear blue sky and white clouds overhead and felt herself relax.

"Lyra..." Ethan called her name cautiously, and Lyra turned her head to him.

"What?" She questioned.

"You have the single worst Pokemon naming skills I've ever seen." He burst out laughing and Lyra lightly punched him in the shoulder, glad to find that she could now relax around the handsome Ethan.

* * *

**This was mostly filler... But yay, a new member to the team! Cici is a powerhouse, but loves sleeping only slightly less than she likes battling. She will definitely be the battler over Gastly and Tango!**


End file.
